Newsroom Archive

It’s tough enough to be strangers in a strange land who don’t speak the language in their new country.

Imagine how much tougher it would be if you were battling a life-threatening illness and couldn’t even communicate with your doctor about your symptoms or concerns.

When circumstances are the most challenging, the team at JPS Health Network shines at its brightest.

As April came to an end and May began, JPS was challenged with a sudden increase in Emergency Department patients, causing a Code Yellow situation to be declared. About 20 percent more people than usual came to the hospital in need of care, stretching resources and putting pressure on team members.

As an elevator ages, technology changes and upgrades must be made to replace obsolete parts. This is modernization. The modernization process typically takes 12-16 weeks to complete and the elevators must be closed in order to make them better. That’s a reason why you’ll sometimes see signs saying certain JPS elevators are out of service. But the investment in time and the temporary inconvenience is well worth it over the long run.

Here’s what you need to know about elevator modernization.

Have you ever looked at a nurse’s ID badge or email signature and noticed a long string of letters behind the name?

LVN, RN, BSN, TCRN -- All those acronyms can help you understand the level of education, skills and qualifications the nurses taking care of you and your family.

Every year, a few of the 2,500 or so nurses who work at JPS Health Network decide they’re ready for a different challenge and opt to move on to a different place to work.

It’s not surprising to their colleagues that many of the nurses who leave come back, according to Elisabeth Rodgers, Director of Clinical Services. She said JPS can be a more demanding place to work than others. But that’s part of what makes it a great place for a career.

When Maria Avelar began cancer treatments at JPS Health Network in 2003, her prognosis looked good.

Her case of mediastinal lymphoma typically has better than a 90 percent likelihood of being cured without future complications. But her oncologist was alarmed when Maria became one of the rare patients who saw the disease come back – and quickly. Hers re-emerged in less than a year and Maria was in for the fight of her life.

Even before she retired last year from her job handling accounts receivable, Fort Worth resident Julie Jacobs was thinking about the days when she would spend her time attending to a task that’s a little more warm and fuzzy.

“I saw a report on TV about people who cuddle babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and I went to work trying to figure out how I could make that happen,” said Jacobs, who celebrated her first anniversary as a JPS Health Network volunteer April 12. “I was very determined that this was what I wanted to do.”

After 30 years as a physical therapist, Karen Cox was ready to focus on the part of her career she loved best – the hands-on taking care of people part– without the administrative duties and paperwork that came with a full time job.

The path to great things for a pair of ambitious, young volunteers leads through the JPS Health Network.

A $90,000 grant from the Junior League of Fort Worth will help team members in the JPS Health Network care for some of its most fragile patients.

The money will be used to buy Prolacta, a human milk-based product used to feed newborns in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that weigh less than 1,000 grams, the equivalent of about 2 lbs., 3 oz. Raquel Anderson, manager of the NICU, said the nutritional fortifier helps babies develop their brain more quickly without the irritability to their digestive system that often comes from bovine milk products.